RENEE MONTAGNE, host:
The presidential candidates are also offering new proposals to address the financial crisis. We're joined now by NPR news analyst Juan Williams to talk about how the economy is affecting the presidential campaign. Good morning, Juan.
JUAN WILLIAMS: Good morning, Renee.
MONTAGNE: Well, one of the things that's happening today is that Senator John McCain is unveiling his plan for the economy. What's he proposing?
WILLIAMS: Well, Renee, what he wants to do is use about half of the bailout plan, about $700 billion, to renegotiate home mortgages and limit the damage done to people who would be foreclosed on and lose their homes. In addition, he wants a job stimulus plan to deal with the increase in unemployment around the country. And he wants to reduce capital gains taxes in '09 as well as '10.
And then moving on he wants to eliminate taxes on unemployment benefits and lower taxes on seniors who tap into their retirement accounts. So, what you see here is a real move by the McCain campaign to say, we're not just giving money to the rich, to the Wall Street types, we're also bailing out, if you will, people at the lower end who have been suffering as a result of the economic crisis.
MONTAGNE: Now, there's been criticism that the McCain campaign is in disarray over its approach to the economic problems. Just yesterday the conservative New York Times columnist William Kristol wrote that McCain ought to, and I'm quoting here, "fire his campaign". It's that bad?
WILLIAMS: Well, you know, there's lots of finger pointing and blame gaming going on, because they're down substantially now statistically significant numbers to Senator Obama. But, you know, when you talk to them, Renee, they have a sense of thinking it was wrong to have suspended the campaign and threaten not to go to that debate, if you'll recall, when McCain said he was going to come back to Washington and help with the negotiation. That did not go well for them.
But secondly, I think it has to do also with the sense that he's not as spirited and not as aggressive as some - especially outsiders - would like the campaign to be. They are much more taken with the example of Sarah Palin, the Alaska governor and the vice presidential nominee, who's been more zealous in attacking Senator Obama, accusing him of palling around with terrorists like William Ayres, the former Weather Underground bomber.
And that whole attacking mode is not really sitting well with some in the McCain camp. So, what they want to do is get away from all this talk about whether or not they should bring in Reverend Jeremiah Wright and advertise, you know, all of his statements. They want to set a new tone. What they're saying around the campaign is it's time to reset, and the resetting begins with that economic plan that we just talked about. And then somehow see if they can get back to three to five points spread with Senator Obama, and hope for the best.
MONTAGNE: Well, just briefly, Juan, it sounds like two things I just heard there. One is that they want to reset the campaign and get more aggressive about people like Reverend Wright, and yet they want to reset and get less aggressive and a little bit nicer, so perhaps undecideds and independents would find some appeal in the campaign. I mean briefly which is it?
WILLIAMS: Well, no, they want to reset, and they want to focus on this economic plan and McCain as a steady leader, and play down a little bit some of the outside. I don't think you're going to see that advertising about Reverend Wright. So what they - the plan is - the thinking behind the plan, Renee, is about one of every five white voters, about 15 percent of the electorate, are still open to be persuaded. And if they can get about, you know, about a third of those voters to switch and go with Senator McCain, you can have a 10 percent swing. And that would bring Senator McCain back close to where Senator Obama is in the polls and really throw it up in the air for Election Day.
MONTAGNE: OK. Let's turn our attention then to Senator Barack Obama, just having talked about the challenges for the McCain campaign. What does Obama have to do, or maybe even avoid doing, in this home stretch?
WILLIAMS: I like the way you put it, because it really is about avoiding any missteps. And of course he wants to present himself as presidential in the upcoming debate on Wednesday night. His key is to say that, you know what, I am not the risky person, the unknown that Senator McCain wants to present me as, that I'm the kind of person who has thought through some of these economic issues. I'm surrounded by experienced hands, and I'm here to lead. And so that he is not controversial and not risky, no matter what the McCain campaign has to say about him.
MONTAGNE: Juan, as always thank you.
WILLIAMS: You're welcome, Renee.
MONTAGNE: NPR news analyst Juan Williams. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
MONTAGNE: Juan, thanks very much.
WILLIAMS: You're welcome, Renee.
MONTAGNE: NPR news analyst Juan Williams.
